$499 Storm E-Bike Sale

erco

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/storm-electric-bike (Limited time sale, but I'm not recommending.)

We've discussed electric bikes here before. I have mixed feelings about this one on indiegogo. Besides looking too good to be true (45 lbs, 20 MPH, 30-50 mile range, $499 price), it's a great way for noobs to get themselves injured or killed. I'm all for biking and technology and green and reducing carbon footprint, but given the way-overfunded interest in this project, it looks like there will soon be a lot of inexperienced riders (I hesitate to call them cyclists) on fairly quick E-bikes in traffic. In addition to moving cars, there are lots of hazards: pedestrians, parked car doors flying open, potholes, wet roads, loose gravel, etc that many potential riders just won't anticipate. A zippy E-bike is definitely fun, and it's easy to get overconfident and accelerate past the danger point of reaction times and bike handling skills. "Can easily glide through snow, sand and wet surfaces".

Technically, I'm wondering if their 30-50 mile range and 45 lb weight estimates are even mildly realistic. I've tried numerous Giant-brand E-bikes, and I made my own quickie E-bike out of a road bike with skinny wheels/tires and 3x 12V SLA cells. It was 50+ lbs and barely had a 20-mile range. Sure their Li-Iion battery is lighter, but those 4" wide tires & wheels weigh 15 or 20 pounds alone, and their rolling resistance is ridonculous. YMMV.

God bless the seller, but I hope they have good lawyers on all fronts. I'll stick to my "push bike" as the Brits call them. I know exactly how far I can go on a gallon of Gatorade.

Gadgetman

My eBike is an old Avalanche 3.0 GT aluminium frame(at least a decade old... Heavy... ) where I added a hub motor in the rear wheel, and a 10Ah/36V Li-something battery that weighs bout 4Kg(9lbs?)
In total, it weighs in at close to 30Kg.
On a good day, I can get around 60 - 70Km out of a recharge. But then I pedal a lot and even switch off the electrics on downhills and even for short periods on flats.

Note that my bike mostly holds to the Pedelec standard;
1. Pedal assist, with power from the motor tapering off as speed increases and stops at 25Km/h.
2. Motor stops within 1.5 seconds of the rider stop pedalling.
3. Motor no more han 250W
Thre's a 4th requirement, that at least one of the brakes also stops the motor immediately if activated, but I need to replace the stock brake handles on my bike to enable that.
(S****y combined brake and gear clusters on the handlebars... )

The Storm has an actual throttle! And stronger motor... That thing must be certified as an electric moped or MC in many areas...
And no, it doesn't have a strong enough frame or brakes for that. Also, you'd be required to wear a MC helmet while driving it.

The 'Street legal' text they're quoting is of course complete and utter nonsense... Even for the USA...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_bicycle#Pedelecs
(Mostly Pedelecs allowed and the Storm is NOT a Pedelec.)

erco

I smelled a rat...https://www.yahoo.com/tech/a-500-ebike-not-so-fast-110086504619.html

banjo

I have a 4 year old e-bike which is originating from China (locally branded to 'Matkaaja') but with a very sturdy frame, weighs probably 25-30 Kg with battery.
When I bought it I was afraid that the Li-Ion battery would barely last the 6-months battery warranty time. To my relief now 4 years later it is almost as good as new, in warm weather I can get out 30-35 Km/charge, now in cold weather around 20-25 Km. When below freezing I'm always ensuring the bike or at least the battery is not outside for a long time, otherwise I'm afraid it might degrade earlier.
I'm commuting daily with the bike and get ~1000 Km/year, it has in effect saved us from the need to buy another car so well worth the 600 € and an extra winter tire.

banjo

I have a 4 year old e-bike which is originating from China (locally branded to 'Matkaaja') but with a very sturdy frame, weighs probably 25-30 Kg with battery.
When I bought it I was afraid that the Li-Ion battery would barely last the 6-months battery warranty time. To my relief now 4 years later it is almost as good as new, in warm weather I can get out 30-35 Km/charge, now in cold weather around 20-25 Km. When below freezing I'm always ensuring the bike or at least the battery is not outside for a long time, otherwise I'm afraid it might degrade earlier.
I'm commuting daily with the bike and get ~1000 Km/year, it has in effect saved us from the need to buy another car so well worth the 600 € and an extra winter tire.

Tor

Lithium batteries can safely be stored in below freezing temperatures. They actually last longer that way. IIRC they won't actually freeze until -40 or so. Using the batteries in cold weather is something else of course. Low output.

erco

I also suffer from diminished power output in sub-freezing temperatures. That's why I live in southern California.

More "news" on the Storm Ebike scam at http://uk.businessinsider.com/storm-ebike-raises-33-million-and-skepticism-2015-2

Anyone who gives their money to this revised Indiegogo campaign (we renamed the bike) deserves to lose their money. Their meandering, purposefully-vague price references should concern even helpless romantics. Even for such an uninspired, butt-ugly bike (no visual design skills were used in the creation of this bike), the components cost more than the initial $500 (now $600) "backer" price.

banjo

Tor wrote: »

Lithium batteries can safely be stored in below freezing temperatures. They actually last longer that way. IIRC they won't actually freeze until -40 or so. Using the batteries in cold weather is something else of course. Low output.

I only remember one occasion in the 90's when it was -40 C where I live. My car, having been outside many hours, did start, but the car thermometer showed -- as the Nissan designer probably did not think it could be colder than -33 C...
The last few years it has only occasionally been colder than -25 C so perhaps my bike battery is fairly safe outside then although the output would be low.

Tor

I should add that it's (depending on the charger, but bicycle battery chargers are probably designed to charge as fast as possible) probably not a good idea to charge the battery when it's cold. That's because its operating voltage is reduced (linked to the lowered output) which means that they could suffer damage during charging. Charging is probably better done at plus 5C - plus 10C if you can manage that.

banjo

Tack Tor, I didn't know that. After arriving home I'm charging in the garage where it is always +5 or above. The battery might be a bit colder after the 15-20 minute trip, depending on the weather of course.
When the battery is empty it takes about 4 hours to completely recharge, don't know if that's considered fast or not.

Learning new things every day :-)

erco

Once a rat, always a rat!

http://www.latimes.com/business/autos/la-fi-hy-sondors-ebike-lawsuit-20150423-story.html